Self-locking rail-chair.



A. G. LIBBMANN.

SELF LOCKING RAIL CHAIR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY'13, 1914.

Patented Jan. 26, 1915.

wi/lwwoow man srarns AUGUST G. LIEBMIANN, OF BUTTE, MONTANA, ASSIGNORATENT OFFTQE.

TO VIGNOLES RAIL CHAIR COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OFDELAWARE.

SELF-LOCKING RAIL-CHAIR.

Application filed May 13, 1914.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, AUGUST G. LIEBMANN,citizen of the United States, residing at Butte, in the county ofSilverbow and State of Montana, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in SelfLocking Rail- Chairs, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to railway track appliance and particularly torail chairs.

The main object of the invention is the provision of a rail chair of aparticularly simple and cheap construction and peculiarly adapted to beused on easy curves and on old established lines under conditions ofhigh speed traffic.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a rail chair whichwill permit of a maximum lateral adjustment of the rail without thenecessity of removing the primary fastenings securing the chair to thetie and which will also permit of a vertical adjustment of the rail andthe use of shims for the support of the rail in the latter case.

Still another object is to so construct the chair that while it willsupport the rail securely against all lateral or tipping thrust andcompensate for emergency strains, yet the rail clamping members will notgrip the outer margin of the base flange of the rail, thus eliminatingdanger of fracture of the rail flange.

A still further object is to so construct the rail clamping members thatthey will resiliently yield under normal stress and thereby eliminateanother cause of rail fracture.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a chair soconstructed as to prevent the insertion of the foot of an employee orother person between the abutments of the chair and the rail.

A still further object of the invention is to so form the chair that theparts thereof may be rolled and thefastenings readily assembled anddisengaged to permit rail renewals.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, whereinFigure l is a perspective view of a tie, a rail and a rail chairconstructed in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 2 isSpecification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 26, 1915.

Serial No. 838,368.

a plan view of the construction shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 an end viewthereof, the rail being in section.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription and indicated in all the views of the accompanying drawingby the same reference characters.

Referring to these drawings, A designates a tie and B a rail of any ofthe standard form.

The rail chair consists of a base-plate 2 having oppositely disposedabutments 3 and 4. These abutments are formed integrally with thebase-plate 2 and while the abutments extend parallel to each other theyboth extend at an angle to the rail B. The abutments are spaced fromeach other a dis tance greater than the width of the rail base, thusallowing the rail to be shifted between the abutments. Both abutmentsextend upwardly and the abutment 4: has a vertical inside face which islongitudinally corrugated as at 5 to provide a plurality oflongitudinally extending parallel teeth or ribs, as shown clearly inFig. 3. The abutment 3 is also disposed entirely in a vertical plane,and the inner face of the abutment 3 is formed with a plurality oflongitudinally extending ribs or corrugations 8.

The base-plate is held upon the tie by means of screw-spikes 9 of anyusual or preferred form and preferably the face of the base-plate inwardof the abutments is formed with the countersinks 10 in which the headsof the screw spikes 9 fit so that the upper ends of the screw spikes areflush with the upper face of the base-plate. These screw spikesconstitute the primary fastenings whereby the chair is held to the tieand it may be pointed out in this connection that screw spikes may beused with this form of rail chair inasmuch as they do not have to beremoved after being once inserted in 0rder to permit lateral adjustmentof the rail to gage.

For the purpose of holding the rail securely between the abutments 3 and4 but permitting the rail to be laterally adjusted or verticallyadjusted, or both, as the case may be, there are provided rail braces 11and 12. Both of these rail braces have the same construction, andtherefore a description of one will apply to the other.

The rail brace 12 is adapted to move either vertically or longitudinallyand is formed of a web having an outer body portion 13 and two inwardlydirected spaced arms 14, the ends of the arms being divergently curvedas at 15 to provide heads engaging one beneath the head of the rail atthe junction of said head with the web thereof and the other engaging atthe junction of the web with the flange of the rail. It will be notedthat the body portion 13 of the brace 12 has a depth equal to the depthof the abutment l.

In order to hold the braces in longitudinally adjusted positions and toadjust said braces longitudinally so that they will have wedgingengagement with the corresponding abutments, there is provided for eachbrace a longitudinally extending bolt 17 which bolt passes between thearms 14L as shown clearly in Figs. 1 and 3. On one end of each bolt isdisposed a nut 18 and the heads of the bolts engage with hoodshapedclips 19, the hood-shaped portions of which engage over the ends of thecorresponding abutments. The body portion of each clip 19 is perforatedfor the passage of the adjacent bolt 17 and is provided with thestrengthening webs 20 above and below the perforation for the bolt. Itwill be obvious now that by tightening either nut 18 the adjacentwedging member will be forced longitudinally along the abutment until itclamps tightly upon the rail, and that if there is no impediment to thelateral movement of the rail, the tightening up of the nut 18 will causethe rail to move laterally to a degree proportioned to the longitudinalmovement of the rail brace.

The operation of my invention will be obvious from what has gone before.In order to shift the rail laterally in one direction, as for instancetoward the left in Fig. 3, the rail brace 11 is shifted in one directionalong the abutment a toward the converging end of the abutment while therail brace 12 is shifted longitudinally along the abutment 3 in theopposite direction. When it is desired to shift the rail to the right inFig. 3 the rail braces 11 and 12 are shifted in the opposite directionsto that above described. In each case the rail braces will have wedgingengagement between their respective abutments and the rail. If it isdesired to elevate the rails, as by means of shims inserted beneath thebase thereof, the nuts 18 are removed so as to permit the withdrawal ofthe rail'braces from engagement with the corrugated faces of theabutments and the rail elevated the required height. The rail braces arethen again placed in position being vertically adjusted with regard tothe abutments so as to correspond to the elevation of the rail. It isobvious that the teeth or corrugations in the outer ends of the railbraces will-mate with any of the corrugations or teeth on the verticalfaces of the abutments, and that, therefore, the rail braces willbe heldfrom vertical movement when they have been adjusted. The rail braces areheld from horizontal movement which would tend to move them out ofwedging engagement between the rail and the abutments by means of thebolts 17, the nuts 18 and hook-shaped members 19.

It is to be particularly noted that this form of rail chair supports therail securely and braces it against lateral or tipping thrust. At thesame time the base flange of the rail on both sides is entirely free atits margin so that liability of fracture is very greatly reduced, andthe rail is yieldingly supported so as to secure that resilioncy whichis peculiarly necessary in proper track construction. Thebase-platehas acrosssection approximately that of a channel iron and, therefore, may bereadily rolled. The corrugations extend the entire height of theabutments and longitudinally thereof, so that they may also be rolled atthe same time.

This chair isparticularly designed for use on easy curves on wellballasted lines where the speed of trains is high. It allows for amaximum adjustment laterally and for maximum adjustment vertically. Itis particularly for use on lines where excessive curvature has beeneliminated and where there is first class drainage.

It may be noted that this chair conforms to the requirements laid downin the Final Report of the Block Signal, and Train Control Board of theInterstate Commerce Commission in that the chair supports vertical loadsand resists horizontal thrusts, resists the tendency of the track tomove laterally and longitudinally and resists the overturning movementor tipping thrust of the rail. Further, it permits the rail to beblocked up or shimmed and the gage to be widened or adjusted withoutnecessitating the removal of the primary fastenings and withoutinvolving lost motion or change of adjustment. The abutments of the bedplate perform the dual function of holding the rail to gage in thedifferent positions of said rail.

and as a means for supporting the rail braces in a truss-like manner,thus preventing buckling of the bed plate downwardly at its center andcurling upwardly at its edges and permitting the employment of a bedplate of ordinary thickness. Inasmuch as the chair eliminates thenecessity of constant respiking it adds to the length of life of tiesand permits the economical use of treated ties. used with spikeseconomically as the constant respiking necessitated by the adjustment ofthe rails tends to so materially reduce the life of the tie as to makethe use of treated ties too costly.

These treated ties cannot be it:

Having thus described the invention what 1s claimed as new is 1. A railchair comprising a base plate having oppositely disposed abutmentsspaced apart distance greater than the base of a rail to permit the railto be adjusted laterally and vertically with respect to the base plate,and rail braces coacting with the abutments, the inner faces of both ofsaid abutments being longitudinally corrugated and the outer faces ofboth of said braces being longitudinally corrugated.

2. In a rail chair, a base plate, an upstanding abutment having itsinner face longitudinally corrugated, and a vertically adjustable railbrace co-acting with the abutment and having longitudinally extendingcorrugations engaging the corrugations on the abutment.

3. In a rail chair, a base-plate having an upstanding abutment, theinner face of which is longitudinally corrugated, a laterally andvertically adjustable rail brace, the outer face of which bears againstthe abut ment and is correspondingly longitudinally corrugated, andmeans adjustably engaging the rail brace with the abutment.

4. In a rail chair, a base plate having an upstanding abutment disposedat an angle to a rail supported on said base-plate, the inner face ofsaid abutment being longitudinally corrugated, a laterally andvertically adjustable rail brace having a beveled face disposed in avertical plane and longitudinally corrugated, and means engaging therail brace to hold it in its adjusted position with relation to saidabutment.

5. A rail chair comprising a base plate having oppositely disposedabutments, said abutments extending parallel to each other but at aninclination to the longitudinal axis of a rail supported upon saidbaseplate, both of said abutments having longitudinally corrugated innerfaces, and laterally and vertically adjustable rail braces adapted to bedisposed within said abutments and having inclined outer facescorresponding to the inclination of the abutments and having wedgingengagement therewith, said faces being longitudinally corrugated.

6. A rail chair comprising a base plate formed with countersinks in itsupper face, rail braces mounted on said rail chair for vertical andlateral movement, and screw spikes passing through perforations in thebase plate and having heads engaging said countersinks.

7. A rail chair including a base-plate having an upstanding abutment,and arail brace coacting therewith including spaced resilient armsconnected by an integral basal portion, said arms being horizontallydisposed and adapted to engage respectively beneath the head and uponthe base flange of a rail, the outer face of the basal portion of therail brace and the inner face of the abutment being corrugated to permita vertical adjustment of the brace.

8. A rail chair. comprising a base plate having an abutment and a railbrace comprising a basal portion coacting with the abutment and havingspaced resilient horizontally disposed arms projecting therefrom adaptedto engage respectively beneath the head of the rail and with abase-flange at the intersection with the web of the rail, the lowermostarm being adapted to contact with the base plate and cut away to archover the margin of the base flange of the rail.

9. In a rail chair, the combination with a base plate, of asemi-resilient rail holding member engageable with a rail at theintersection of the web with the base flange thereof and adjustable withthe rail vertically and laterally of the base plate, the under face ofsaid rail holding member being adapted to contact with the base plateand being cut-away to arch over the outer margin of the base flange ofthe rail.

10. In a rail chair, the combination with a base-plate having spacedupstanding abutments, of vertically adjustable rail clamping membersco-acting with the abutments and each having spaced resilient arms, oneengageable beneath the head of a rail and the other at the intersectionof the base of the rail with the web thereof.

11. In a rail chair, a base-plate having an upstanding abutment disposedat an angle to a rail supported upon the chair, a rail engaging memberhaving an inclined face coacting with the inclined face of the abutmentand having wedging engagement therewith, a bolt passing longitudinallythrough the rail clamping member, and a clipengag ing the end of theabutment with said bolt.

12. In a rail chair, a base-plate having an upstanding abutment disposedat an angle to a rail supported upon the chair, a rail engaging memberhaving an inclined face coacting with the inclined face of the abutmentand having wedging engagement therewith, a bolt passing longitudinallythrough the rail clamping member, and a hoolishaped clip through whichthe end of the bolt passes, said clip having detachable engagement withthe end of the abutment.

13. A rail-chair including a base-plate having an upstanding abutment,the abutment being longitudinally inclined to a rail supported upon thechair, and a rail-engaging member having a beveled outer face coactingwith the abutment and having inwardly projecting spaced rail-engagingarms, a bolt passing longitudinally between said arms and having a headat one end, and nut at the other, and a hook-shaped clip through whichthe head of the bolt passes, said clip engaging with the end of theabutment whereby the rail-engaging member may be shifted longitudinallywith relation to the abutment and held in its adjusted position.

14. In a rail chair of the character clescribed, a base-plate having anupstanding member inclined to the transverse axis of the base-plate, awedging member coacting with the upstanding member, the confrontingfaces of said members having longitudinally extending corrugationswhereby the wedging member may be shifted longitudinally with relationto the upstanding memher and vertically adjusted with relation to saidupstanding member.

15. The eombin ation with a tie and a rail supported thereon, of abase-plate having upstanding abutments disposed parallel to each otherbut at an angle to the rail, primary fastening devices holding the baseplate to the tie, oppositely disposed rail braces, each enacting withone of said abutments and having a beveled face engaging therewith, eachrail-engaging member having upper and lower spaced resilient armsengaging with the web of the rail at the intersection of the base andhead thereof, bolts passing each between the arms of one rail Copies ofthis patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing thebrace, nutsengaging said bolts, and a clip for each bolt engaging overthe extremity of the corresponding abutment.

16. The combination with a base plate, of a rail adjustable laterallyandvertically with respect to the base plate, means for permanentlysecuring the base plate toa tie, and semi-resilient rail holding membersengaging the opposite sides of the rail and adjustable with the raillaterally and vertically of the base plate without disturbing the baseplate securing means.

17. A rail chair including a base plate having spaced upstandingabutments, rail holding members having spaced resilient arms adapted toengage beneath the head of a rail and .onthe base'flange thereof, andmeans interposed between the arms of each rail holding member andco-acting with the adjacent abutment for adjusting the rail holdingmembers longitudinally.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

AUGUST G. LIEBMANN.

Witnesses J. D. YOAKLEY, FREDERIG B. WRIGHT.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, 13. 6.

